Chapter 625. Henpecked (5)

Chapter 625. Henpecked (5)

YANK!

Kang Jin-Ho roughly yanked at the front door to his family home and entered with a scary scowl etched on his face, something he had not done in what felt like forever. Unfortunately, though...

“How dare you glare at me like that!”

All the sharpness and fury contained in Kang Jin-Ho's glare instantly dissipated without a chance to get unleashed by his mother's direct attack.

“...Mother. I didn't know you were home.”

“Of course I'm home,” Baek Hyeon-Jeong tutted. “Where could I possibly be at this time of the day?”

“Oh, I see...” Kang Jin-Ho smiled awkwardly at his mother sitting on the living room couch.

He might have briefly regained his former swagger thanks to the betrayal of his family member, but this was not Zhongyuan. Nothing could stop or deter Kang Jin-Ho back then, but in the modern era? No matter what he tried, there were two people he just couldn't win against!

Among the two, the true ruler of the family was busy tutting in disapproval at her son.

“Son, it's not like you're going through puberty, so why are you yanking and slamming the front door like that?”

“...Did I do that?”

“Although I'm grateful to finally witness my son going through his rebellious phase, don't you think you and I are both a bit too old for it now?”

Kang Jin-Ho didn't say anything and concentrated on taking his shoes off.

Baek Hyeon-Jeong scanned her son from top to bottom. “How about something to eat, son?”

“It's fine, mother. I've already had some.”

“Really? You don't look like you have.”

“...”

“Want me to prepare some for you?”

“No, I'm really fine, mother. Besides, I can prepare food myself now. You don't have to worry about such things anymore.”

“...Son?”

“Yes?”

Baek Hyeon-Jeong sighed deeply before carrying on. “It feels like you're uncomfortable about your mother wanting to prepare meals for you. However, look at this situation from my perspective.”

“...Okay?”

“Yes, I know you can make your meals without me worrying about them. You being unable to do that doesn't make any sense, after all. I know you're not an idiot on that level.”

“...I see. Then, why?”

“Because I know you are not gonna do a proper job!” Baek Hyeon-Jeong firmly yelled at her son. “If you prepare your food, you'll only bring out three side dishes when it's supposed to be ten! And your guk will be cold, too! And, and! If you can't be bothered, you'll just slap some jam on a slice of toast and call it a day! How can I not interfere when you do stuff like that, son? No one will care whether you fill your belly that way or not if I'm not around to watch over you. Can you imagine the guilt I'd feel when my only son eats whatever is lying around as if you don't care what goes inside you, even though I'm sitting on the couch doing nothing?” [1]

Kang Jin-Ho couldn't think of any excuses after listening to his mother, and the only thing he could do was sneakily avoid meeting her critical gaze.

“Son, if you wish to tell me you can prepare your own meals, do a proper job of it first, okay? I've prepared so many side dishes for you, so how can I sit still when all you take out from the fridge is a little bit of kimchi?”

'...I had no idea this topic was worthy of this much nagging.'

Kang Jin-Ho had lived over a century when all three of his lives were combined, but it seemed he was still a little kid in his mother's eyes.

“So? What should I do? Do you want something to eat or not?”

Kang Jin-Ho hurriedly shook his head. “N-no, I'm fine. Thank you.”

Baek Hyeon-Jeong looked rather displeased as she scanned her son from top to bottom again. If only Kang Jin-Ho was a little frail-looking or overweight! She could've unleashed her torrent of righteous nagging. Unfortunately, even to her critical glare, her son's figure was absolutely perfect.

“Keep that up, and you're gonna damage your gut, son!”

“...!”

Of course, being perfect didn't equate to water-tight defense. A mother's nagging was no different from a legendary striker who could slip past some of the best defenders in the world and score the winning goal, after all!

'This is not what I pictured in my head...'

Kang Jin-Ho could only pout faintly in dejection after his swagger got deflated from a series of brutal assaults.

He urgently scanned the vicinity in the vain hope of escaping from this difficult situation somehow, only for one of the doors to suddenly open... And Kang Eun-Yeong brazenly waltzed out of her room.

“Oppa? You're home~.”

“...You!” Kang Jin-Ho hurriedly revved his motor once more. “Come and sit down!”

“Ng? Why?”

“Hurry!”

That was when Kang Eun-Yeong noticed her brother's stoically expressionless face, something she couldn't exactly remember seeing in a long, long while. From other people's perspectives, Kang Jin-Ho might seem perpetually expressionless, but his little sister obviously boasted a higher degree of understanding of him, so spotting that faint hint of anger in his face was a cakewalk for her.

“Oppa, what are you angry about this time?”

“You! What did I tell you?”

“Eh?”

“...”

“Well?”

“...”

“How about smooching a girl, then?”

“Y-you are supposed to be a girl yourself, so how could you say something like that?”

“Huh...” Kang Eun-Yeong turned her head and stared at her mother. “You saw that, right? Mom?”

“Yes, and he really is hopeless, isn't he?” Baek Hyeon-Jeong stared in disappointment at her son. Of course she already knew how harmless her son could be. However, she still had no idea that the harmless streak wasn't only reserved for his family but for the opposite sex as well! “What a waste of such good looks, too...”

“That's my point exactly!” Kang Eun-Yeong sagely nodded.

Kang Jin-Ho urgently looked around. He was searching for an ally. Unfortunately, the only likely candidate for that role, Kang Jin-Ho's father, resolutely refused to open the door and come out of the main bedroom!

'And I can sense you standing right behind the door, father!'

Despite eavesdropping on this marriage talk taking place in the living room, Kang Yu-Hwan was firmly staying put. Kang Jin-Ho felt a sharp dagger of betrayal dig into his flesh, but... Even his father would've been unable to lend any sort of assistance against these two hungry lionesses!

“...Mother,” Kang Jin-Ho spoke in a weighty-sounding voice in an attempt to regain control of this situation. “I will handle that matter on my own.”

“...We didn't say otherwise, son.”

“Thank you for worrying about me, but...! My relationship with Miss Yeon-Ha is nothing like the one from your imagination.”

Kang Eun-Yeong quietly muttered to no one in particular. “But that relationship will go nowhere if no one does anything about it...”

“You, be quiet,” Kang Jin-Ho scowled scarily, forcing his little sister to sneakily avoid meeting his glare.

She didn't have anything to fear while having the upper hand, but holding Kang Jin-Ho's gaze when he was in a serious mode was still impossible for her.

Baek Hyeon-Jeong sighed. “Well, what can I say when you are this adamant about handling it yourself. I'm just saying, that girl doesn't seem like a bad choice for you, so... If you're interested, I'm not going to oppose you, so do your best.”

“Thank you. Don't worry, mother. Something like what you think won't happen for a while.”

“...You're no fun, Jin-Ho. No fun at all,” said Baek Hyeon-Jeong while ruefully smacking her lips. For a moment there, she really did resemble an unhappy lioness who unwillingly spat out a juicy piece of steak. “In any case, get some rest, son.”

“Thank you... Ah.” Kang Jin-Ho faltered and hesitated as if there was something else he'd like to bring up.

Baek Hyeon-Jeong tilted her head. “What's wrong?”

“Uhm, well... I wanted to tell you something, you see...?”

“Okay?”

Kang Jin-Ho clamped his mouth shut and grimaced even more. When he thought about it, this timing seemed the absolute worst. Bringing this topic up felt eerily similar to digging his own grave, but...

“Son, did you do something wrong?”

“No, it's not that. It's not. It's, uh...” Kang Jin-Ho hesitated for a few seconds more before squeezing his eyes shut. “It seems I won't be home for a little while, mother.”

“Mm? You won't? Are you going somewhere?”

“Yes. I'm going to... Mm...”

“Going to where?”

Kang Jin-Ho groaned, his shoulders drooping in resignation. “...China, mother.”

“...”

“...”

The atmosphere in the living room rapidly grew icy. Baek Hyeon-Jeong wordlessly stared at her son for what seemed like an eternity, then quietly asked back. “Did you say... China?”

“Yes, mother.”

“As in the... People's Republic of China? That place?”

“Yes.”

“China, as in... where Miss Yeon-Ha is currently shooting her show?”

“...Yes.”

“Ohhh, I see. It sounds like my son wants to do something in China. However, could that something be... related to Miss Yeon-Ha somehow? As in, joining her over there? That would be awkward, no? Especially right after saying all those things to us a minute ago.”

Creeeaaak...

Kang Yu-Hwan, who had been leisurely exiting the main bedroom after determining that the coast was clear, quickly realized this rapid change in the situation and sneakily re-entered the room, then closed the door behind him.

“F-father...”

Bang!

Kang Jin-Ho helplessly watched as the doorway closed shut without mercy and groaned in pain at the severing of the bond between a father and his son.

“Son, come and sit down here. Now.”

“...Yes, mother.”

This must be what a cow would've felt while being dragged into an abattoir. Kang Jin-Ho squeezed his eyes shut when his sister smirking like an evil villain gleefully opened her piehole.

1. “Guk” is a class of soup-like Korean dish. ?